I have an '09 Tucson and was wondering what it would take to put a turbo (and all the other required components) on it.

I have 52K on it and soon will need tranny fluid change, and a timing belt/water pump replacement. So if I am going to attempt to have this done, the 60K mark might be the best time to do it.

What would the money range be?
What would the time involved be?
Can the parts be purchased, or would heavy fabrication be required?

Here is what I want to achieve. More power for getting on the highway. (we have short on-ramps on my route to work). My wife had an '09 VW Tiguan, 2.0T, and that thing would get-up-and-go like a powerful 6 cylinder. We chose to keep the Tucson over the Tiguan becuase it rides nicer, and has more creature comforts, and the rear hatch window opens without having to open the whole hatch lid.

I know nothing about installing a turbo, and little about the terminology that surrounds them , ie: boost, waste gate, intercooler, and would a different cam be required, and-or different pistons??????

So much to learn, so I decided to ask here first, from people in the know, and people who may have already turbo'd a Hyundai 2.0 4 cylider.

Any help and criticysim is welcome and appreciated.

 

First, what engine? 2.7L V6 or the 2.0L 4-cylinder?
Second, are you planning to do the work or pay someone to do it?

If you "know nothing about installing a turbo, and little about the terminology that surrounds them" then I would suggest not doing the work yourself. It's not a job for a shadetree mechanic that read about how to do it on the Internet.

My suggestion, trade it in on a new Turbo Kia Sportage. The Sportage is a clone to the Tucson. The only downside (for you) is it doesn't have the opening rear glass. I never use the rear glass on my 2006 Tucson. I always open the hatch. It takes no longer or more effort to open the whole hatch vs the glass and it's easier to put things in the larger opening instead of the smaller window opening.

 

Thanks NovaResource,
The window in the hatch is good for me for the lumber runs to Home Depot. After reading your reply, and doing some research on the net for the past hour, I see that this job is more money and expertise than I want to spend, and knowledge than I have.
I found a place on-line that has kits for $3,999. But the ECU mapping, and other required things (and all the things that can go wrong) is too much of a gamble for me. I did see another suggestion on another "Turbo" site, and that was Remove the current engine and drop in a used engine that is already set up for a turbo.
I will look into the Kia Sportage. Is that turbo'd, or does it just have more power? (I am not hell-bent on a turbo, I just want more power, and I really like my Tucson.)
Thanks again for the reply and suggestion.

 

The Sportage (like the new Tucson) comes standard that a 2.4L NA 4-cylinder that does has more power than your '09 Tucson. However, the Sportage SX model comes with a 2.0L turbo engine that has even more power (there is no turbo version of the Tucson). The NA 2.4L may be all you need but I'd suggest driving all 3 (the new Tucson, the Sportage and the turbo Sportage SX).

 

I'll check into the Kia, as the wife and I looked at the 2013 Tucsons about a month ago. We didn't see any with a V-6. (I believe that when I bought my '09 there was a fully loaded, 4/all wheel drive V-6 {for around $30 grand} next to it. They were the last two on the lot, during the "cash-for-clunkers" sales event) I admit that we didn't test drive one, because I wanted either a Turbo-4, or a V-6. Our local dealer, in Enfield, CT, only had 4 cylinder models.
The SantaFe comes with a 6, but I didn't want the larger vehicle.
We will go check out the Kia Turbo.

 

UPDATE: I should have done my homework better. According
to what I am reading on the WEB, the next generation,
Tucson, starting in 2010, no longer offers a V-6, but they
say that the new I-4 is more powerful that the old V-6.

Taken from EDMUNDS.com: "Enter the second-generation
Tucson, which arrived for 2010 with sharp exterior styling
and a slick interior to match. There's no V6 option, but the
current four-cylinder is more powerful than the old six-cylinder
while being more efficient than the previous base four. Overall,
the current Tucson is a considerably more capable and
interesting vehicle than before. A used first-generation Tucson
isn't a bad idea if you're looking for no-frills transportation on a
budget, but the second-generation Tucson takes Hyundai to a
new level in this segment."

I will go back to the Hyundai dealer and take one for a
test drive. I want to stay with Hyundai because of the
quality I have experienced with my present vehicle. If that
doesn't perform the way I want, then I will go to the
KIA dealer.

 

Just to clarify, the Santa Fe was just redesigned. Now there are 2 versions of the SF: the smaller Santa Fe Sport (2-row, 5-passenger) and the larger Santa Fe (3-row, 6 or 7-passenger). The SF Sport comes ONLY with a 4-cylinder (a 2.0 Turbo is optional). To get a V6 you need to buy the larger Santa Fe.


Again, to clarify, the Tucson comes in 3 trim levels: GL, GLS and Limited. The base GL has a 165-hp 2.0L 4-cylinder. That's more than the 2.0L (140-hp) in your 2009 Tucson, not not as much as the old V6 (173-hp). Only the GLS and Limited versions of the new Tucson have the more powerful 2.4L 4-cylinder (176-hp). While that does have more power (3-hp more) it has less torque (168 ft-lbs vs 178 ft-lbs for the old V6).

The Kia Sportage SX turbo has 260-hp and 269 ft-lbs torque.

 

Thank you again.

Looks like the Sportage (at least on paper) is the better vehicle for what I want to do with it.